How Online Digital Platforms have helped organizations in Recruiting Effectively and effeciently

A 1

DISSERTATION PROJECT REPORT

SUBMITTED IN THE PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF

THE REQUIREMENTS OF ARKA JAIN UNIVERSITY

For the award of the degree of

BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

For the session 2017-20

School of Commerce and Management

Submitted By

KUNAL SINGH

AJU/00065/17

Faculty Mentor

Name: POONAM

Designation: ASST. PROFESSOR

ARKA JAIN University, Jamshedpur

 CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL

This dissertation report of ‘KUNAL SINGH’ titled How Online Digital Platforms have helped
organizations in Recruiting Effectively and efficiently is approved in quality and form has been
found to be fit for the partial fulfillment of the requirements of ARKA JAIN UNIVERSITY for the
award of the degree of BACHELOR of BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

Approval of the Approval of the Dean,

Programme Coordinator, School of Commerce and

Dept. of BBA Management,

School of Commerce and ARKA JAIN UNIVERSITY

Management,

ARKA JAIN UNIVERSITY

Approval of the External Examiner

Certificate from the Faculty Mentor

This is to certify that KUNAL SINGH, AJU/00065/17, a student of BBA (2017-20), has undertaken
the Dissertation Project titled “How Online Digital Platforms have helped organizations in
Recruiting Effectively and efficiently”, for the partial fulfillment of the requirements of ARKA JAIN
University for the award of the degree of Bachelor of Business Administration, under my supervision.
To the best of my knowledge, this project is the record of authentic work carried out during the
academic year (2017-20) and has not been submitted anywhere else for the award of any Certificate/
Degree/ Diploma etc.

Signature of the Faculty Mentor

Name of the Faculty Mentor: Poonam
Designation of the Faculty Mentor: Asst. Professor

Declaration by the Student

 I , KUNAL SINGH, hereby declare that the project titled “How Online Digital Platforms
have helped organizations in Recruiting Effectively and efficiently”, has been carried out by
me during my ‘DISSERTATION’ and is hereby submitted in the partial fulfillment of
the requirements of ARKA JAIN University for the award of the degree of Bachelor of
Business Administration. To the best of my knowledge, the project undertaken, has been
carried out by me and is my own work. The contents of this report are original and this
report has been submitted to ARKA JAIN University, Jamshedpur and it has not been
submitted elsewhere for the award of any Certificate/Diploma/degree etc.

Signature of the Student

Name of the Student: KUNAL SINGH
University Enrollment No: AJU/00065/17
B.B.A. - 2017-20

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I take this opportunity to thank my faculty mentor POONAM, ASST. PROFESSOR, ARKA JAIN
University, for his/ her valuable guidance, closely supervising this work over with helpful suggestions,
which helped me to complete the report properly and present. More importantly, his/ her valuable
advice and support helped me to put some creative efforts on my project. He/ she has really been an
inspiration and driving force for me and has constantly enriched my raw ideas with his/ her vast
experience and knowledge. Specially, I would also like to give my special thanks to my parents whose
blessings and love enabled me to complete this work properly as well.

Name of the Student: KUNAL SINGH

University Enrollment No.: AJU/00065/17
B.B.A. - 2017-20

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER TOPIC PAGE

CONTENT NO.
NO.
CHAPTER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8

CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO THE SECTOR /

COMPANY 9
 CHAPTER 3 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 10

CHAPTER 4 PROJECT OBJECTIVE(S) 11

CHAPTER 5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 15

CHAPTER 6 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION 17

CHAPTER 7 FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 25

CHAPTER 8 CONCLUSION 27

CHAPTER 9 BIBLOGRAPHY 28

CHAPTER: 1

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The present study was carried out to ascertain the benefits of online recruitment, and ways in which it
could be improved, at a leading UK technology firm – with respect to graduate, experienced and
executive employees. Review of existing literature pointed out that Innovations in technology have
revolutionized recruitment processes. Several theorists also claimed that online recruitment leads to an
improved quality and quantity of applications, an enhanced platform for information sharing, more
operational effectiveness, cost effectiveness and a lack of boundaries. In order to verify or discredit
these assertions, quantitative surveys and semi-structured interviews were carried out on 14 students &
graduates, and four members of Google Inc. graduate recruitment team respectively. The results
obtained from graduates suggested that they were highly influenced by the corporate brand, presence of
the organisation on the web and online job boards. Results from Google Inc.’s recruitment department
suggested that they achieved a number of efficiencies such as reduced cost, overhead and faster
response rate. They have also generally increased their number of applicants by a six fold since
adopting online recruitment. However the quality of candidates received is said to be low compared to
the quantity, and the company has difficulties in meeting their diversity and disability quotas. These
results suggest that the company is not being effective in leveraging their brand, and other means
available to them, in attracting the required quality of candidates. Numerous graduates also chose
agency as a preferred form of finding a job, thereby illustrating that traditional methods should not be
totally abolished. A synergy between agency, job board, branding, and online recruitment is therefore
proposed, as an effective method of meeting quantity and quality employment targets for the
organisation.
 CHAPTER: 2

INTRODUCTION TO THE SECTOR / COMPANY

An organization’s human resource has been defined as it is most important and effective asset, in terms
of building and sustaining competitive advantage. The recruitment and selection of this very important
resource is therefore very crucial in any organization looking to build organizational competencies
through its people.

Online Recruitment Success Factors

The following factors define the necessary steps that need to be taken for organizations seeking to
recruit quality candidates. They determine how an online recruitment campaign can be effective.

i. Web Appearance

An organization’s career website is described by Birgelen et al (2008) as “an important precursor to

organizational attraction”. First impressions formed on interaction with career websites have the
potential to shape an individual’s attitude towards the organization, and their choice to apply for a job
vacancy (Zusman and Landis, 2002).

Cober et al (2004) found that a prospective employee’s decision to apply for a job position is
influenced indirectly by their overall view regarding the ease of use, view and information relevancy of
the corporate careers website. Searle (2004) also asserts that the website bandwidth speed, its user
friendliness and ease of use, have an impact on applicants’ perception, especially those who have
limited Internet experience. A survey carried out by Williams (2008) also found that 50% of employees
who partook stated that they believed that improving their corporate websites and using job boards
were successful ways of increasing the number of job applications and diversity within organizations.
Parry and Tyson (2008) therefore concludes based on interview data, that functionalities of corporate
websites could be improved in such a way that limitations are surmounted and the Internet becomes a
more successful medium for attracting candidates across all industry sectors and demographics.

However, several theorists have refuted the sole importance of corporate websites as a key determinant
of the number of job applications received. Birgelen et al (2008) argues that the potential of a
corporate website to attract employees seeking job positions is facilitated by the employee’s attraction
to the company, and not necessarily by appearance of its website. The reputation, brand and
attractiveness of the organization are the main factors that mediate web appearance and job
applications. Parry and Tyson (2008) also state that perceived success of corporate websites was related
mainly to the size of the organization.

Though the promoting argument does seem valid, it would be safe to conclude the benefits of web
appearance as a recruitment attractant are only evident in large organizations that already have a wide
known brand and reputation. Smaller companies are at a severe disadvantage with regards to using web
appearance as a main success factor when promoting online recruitment

ii. Advertisement and Information availability

Barber (1998) identified that job applicants usually go through two stages when pursuing prospective
companies to apply to:

Broad search to identify as many recruiting organizations as possible,

Sorting, selection and research on a short list of potential employers where applications would be made.

The need to drive traffic to a corporate website using effective external advertisement such as job
boards, search engine adverts and newspaper clips is therefore essential in communicating a company’s
suitable as an organization of choice (Parry and Tyson, 2008). If a company were not readily available
through such advertisement portals, it would be highly unlikely that a job applicant would consider
sending in applications to such companies (Birgelen et al, 2008). The web therefore plays a huge role in
the gathering research on potential employers, and Rozelle and Landis (2002) states that it is perceived
as more realistic than other sources for company information. It enables students to make informed
decisions about which companies to apply to and how to write their applications (Searle, 2004).

The provision of accurate corporate information, through the most appropriate online medium is
advised by Birgelen et al (2008) as an effective way of attracting new employees. Williamson et al
(2003) also illustrated that differences in the ways in which recruitment websites orient themselves
with regards to availability of information online, influences perception of organizational
attractiveness. He further asserts that application decisions and their attraction to organizations are as a
result of the amount and quality of information they are able to gather about potential employers, as
well as their perception about the organization.

iii. Corporate brand

The brand of an organization is very crucial in attracting the right kind of employee (Wilson, 2008).
Potential job employees are usually attracted to a more developed corporate brand, as they believe that
an established brand would constitute a more stable and growing organization (Crispin and Mehler,
2006). Big brands also offer better opportunities for job seekers, as opposed to smaller companies
(Younger, 2007), which is probably why they have been successful at online recruitment.

Wilson (2008) also asserts that on-going corporate processes that positively impact on the company’s
reputation should be communicated in such a way that it has a positive impact on people’s intentions to
seek a career in the company. Williamson et al (2003) also states that companies unable to leverage
existing brands, or do not possess the relevant reputable brand, usually face recruitment problems,
especially in highly competitive sectors. The methods in which brands are being delivered and
represented are very crucial in attracting talent globally. Wilson (2008) asserts that a global brand
could be leveraged in attracting talent resources in several parts of the world. Inversely, Othman and
Musa (2006) also theorises that online recruitment can increase the image of an organization, especially
with regards to dedicated recruitment websites. It imposes an image of innovation and flexibility on the
organization (Fister, 1999)

However, job applications derived through an effective use of corporate branding, recruitment website
and online information do not necessarily impact on the quality of candidates received, just the quantity
(Fister, 1999). A study carried out by Williams (2008), illustrated that a majority of companies still
believe that the use of employment agencies is still one of the best ways to improve quality of job
applicants received. Miller and Weckert (2000) also found that some undergraduates applying for jobs
had privacy concerns and were unwillingness to submit personal details.

. Online Recruitment: Job searches and recruitment had been predominantly done through
newspaper postings, word-of-mouth and agency recruitment before the advent of the Internet (Singh
and Finn, 2003). Recruiting companies then went through daunting tasks of sorting, filing and choosing
through a vast list of paper based job applications, which usually involved a lot of resources in terms of
human capital and costs.

However, the penetration of the Internet, and the near 100% adoption of Internet job applications, has
seen this trend change drastically. Younger (2007) reports that 100% of all Fortune 500 companies in
the US and FTSE 100 companies in the UK utilize the Internet predominantly for their job postings and
for receiving applications, as opposed to just one-third of Fortune 500 companies in 1999. This trend
has become so widespread that a vast majority of job applicants (96%) in a study conducted by the
Society for Human Resource Management in 2006 reported using the Internet for job search and
applications (Younger, 2007). Some companies are also known to utilize Internet virtual worlds, such
as Second Life, in holding recruitment fairs, and having career session with prospective students (Riley,
2007). The archaic use of newspaper publishing and other sources has diminished greatly, as the UK
newspaper industry has suffered a 20% year on year fall in ad revenue, in recent years (Guardian,
2009).
Reasons Why Social Recruiting Beats Traditional Recruiting
 Digitally- Making Human Resources Human again.
 Ability to Connect with Top Talent Now
 Leads to Better Connections Faster
 Make Your Job Openings Go Viral
 Helps You Get to Know More About the Candidate Than Just What ’s on Paper
 Discovering Candidates Who Want to Be Discovered
 Allows Recruiters to Connect With Talent in a More Informal and Engaging Manner
 Relationship-Driven Connections
 Availability of Relevant Candidate Data

Strategies to make social media recruitment successful

 Make the social networking pages transparent: Use a Facebook page to show prospective
 applicants what it is good to work in that particular organization.
 Open the conversation: These sites are used to converse with potential employees. Post opening
in Twitter and respond to inquiries. Allow people to comment on the recruitment process and learn.
 Build Your Network: Provide tips on the job market, good networking will enhance the chances that
top talent will engage with the content and apply for a job.
 Leverage the web, but don’t rely on it exclusively: It should not the only source they should also
look at others.
 Move Fast: Top candidates move quickly delays cause to end up with second rate hires. One has to
monitor daily.
 Ask for help: One can tweet it post it on Facebook which will help followers to inform about an
opening for the same.

Differences between Social Media and Other Recruitment Options

Finding new talent in the market is incredibly difficult and HR managers across the country have tried
different methods of recruitment in order to find the best possible candidates for their organizations.
Overtime there have generally been two different types of recruitment methods that are employed by HR
managers across the Globe. One is the traditional recruitment method, while the other is the modern
recruitment method. One may argue which methods of recruitment are the best, but overtime both have
their positives in helping organizations hire the best possible candidates.
Traditional Recruitment Methods
When it comes to recruitment, organizations around the world have reaped the benefits of the traditional
recruitment methods which have served them well and delivered employees which have played a key
role in defining their organizations. Traditional recruitment methods are:
 Local Paper Advertisements: The best way to spread the word about new jobs is through local
newspaper advertisements. One can argue that this is the simplest form of recruitment and yet the
most effective method as well.
 Local Employment Office Postings: Many organizations have employed recruitment methods which
are based on postings at local unemployment offices, where there are bound to be people looking for
a job and you are likely to find all kinds and sorts of employees.
 Temporary Agencies: One of the maximum used recruitment methods is through temporary
employment agencies that can shortlist potential candidates for the companies and find the
experienced professionals in that particular field easily.
 Internal Hiring: Another way of recruitment which has been extremely successful over the years has
been the
Recruitment Through Digital Platforms
97 internal appointment program, through which the company often promotes employees
and transfers them. This
is one of the safest methods of recruitment, since you know all about the employee and the
level of work you are getting from them.
The Modern Recruitment Methods
The 21st century has seen animportant rise in technology and has seen modern day
recruitment methods grow in influence and make a difference in landing candidates for
organizations all over the Globe.
 The Power of Social Media: It is quite common to use the services of social media, when
you are recruiting today, since it is both inexpensive and allows you to form a vast pool
of potential candidates, within a very short period of time. Social media websites such as
LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter have communities where potential employees submit their
resumes and credentials in the hope of lending a job.
Source: www.aol.com
Differences between Social Media Platforms
There are many different platforms for social media today. In short, the difference between
these three social media sites can be described as follows:
LinkedIn: Tells others who you are.
Facebook: Tells others who you know.
Twitter: Tells others what you are doing.
This of course is a very compressedexplanation. There are a lot more differences between
Facebook and LinkedIn about a wide range of issues. Facebook (when compared to LinkedIn)
has more users, generally has more information on it, is typically attentive on ‘‘friends’’ (rather
than “professional connections ’), it has a greater ability to restrict access, etc. LinkedIn, on
the other hand, is more like an expanded resume and explicitly used for connecting with
eachother professionally, including connecting because of recruitment and selection
(Kluemper, 2014). LinkedIn appears to have gained wide acceptance as an active recruiting
tool, Facebook and Twitter on the other hand are viewed with skepticism by the device
companies.
Provost (2009) held a survey in which the test group did not believe that Facebook and Twitter
reached the experienced professionals they are seeking, they felt that both platforms were purely
socially focused or for a younger demographic group with predominantly entry-level skills. So
Facebook might not be considered as a helpful selection platform for employers.
LinkedIn can be used in a whole variety of ways – to identify business contracts,
candidates or applicants, to canvass opinion on a particular topic, to advertise jobs, to hook
back up with a former colleagues or to contact or to advertise your services, credentials or
availability for a new job (Thew, 2008). LinkedIn was initially a free service and for the
functionality mentioned above it stays that way, but there are now tiers of membership that
allow the user to buy a number of direct contracts (In-Mails) and send a message directly to
another member that is not already on their level one network. This only works if that
member has indicated that they are happy to receive direct contracts.
Advantages and Limitations of Social media Recruitment
Advantages for employers
 Nowadays, recruiters typically use social media, not to gain new information (this they
obtain primarily from the candidate’s résumé), but to check if those resumes are correct
and to try to learn something about the applicants’ network (Reiners& Alexander, 2013).
 The effective range in which recruiters can search for applicants is much broader.
 Recruiters can easily access both national and international applicants.
 Selection of applicants can also be supported by filtering and cross-checking online
resources.
 A proportion of the work load has been moved from the employer to the applicant.
Applicants themselves need to make sure their social media platforms look well.
 Cost reduction might be a logical reason for companies to be using social media in
recruitment.
 Organizations can save time in the recruitment process. This is due to the elimination of
intermediaries and a shorter recruiting cycle.

98 Research in Digital Revolution and New India

(ISBN : 978-1-5136-2964-3) Limitations for employers
 Negative information that has been retrieved from the jobseekers’ personal profile may not
be considered in the right context. They could therefore result in a hasty rejection decision
(Brown & Vaughn 2011, p. 220-221). This could lead to a lawsuit for the employer.
 Consequences could also have a negative influence on the company.
 A study by Madera (2012) showed that an organization that uses social media sites as a
selection tool was perceived as less fair than an companies that did not use social media in
recruitment and selection. Job pursuit intentions were also found to be lower for an
organization that used social media sites as a selection tool than for an organization that
did not.
 Information that is available about some of the jobseekers might not be available about
others.This makes comparison between applicants unreliable.
 Shared information on social media sites might also be brought in a way that is seen as
socially desirable. So there is a very real possibility that the information on social media
sites might be inaccurate (Suder, 2014).
 When employers are using social media for recruitment they also need to be aware of the
risks of negligent hiring.
Advantages for jobseekers
 A social media is a low costs mean to search for jobs.
 Jobseekers can join the social media platforms of companies and then easily have
access to the vacancies companies post.
 Jobseekers can easily access influential referees and important information about the
company.
 Both jobseekers and recruiter can maintain, mobilize, and develop their social network more
efficiently because of social media. They can both filter out relevant information and
use them to create new collaboration opportunities.
Limitations for Jobseekers
 Jobseekers do not always realize what information about themselves might leak out into
the public (Madejski et al., 2011) or how an ordinary posts or comments might be
misunderstood (Wang et al., 2011) by a possible future employer.
 Online information can also be inaccurate, it might even damage them as an individual
(Henson et al., 2011).  It is important that jobseekers realize the seriousness of this. A
study by Kluemper showed that employers
reject jobseekers based on what they find about them on social media. Kluemper (2013)
found that 35% of employers said that they would reject a jobseeker because of
information they found on social media.
 The top reasons that were given for rejecting applicants included the presence of
provocative or inappropriate photos or information, content about drinking or using
drugs, bad-mouthing a previous employer, poor communications skills, and
discriminatory comments, lying about qualifications, and sharing confidential
information from a previous employer.
Examples
Starbucks is an example of one hospitality company that has been experimenting with social
media for job recruiting. At the ERE Media Webinar Expo, Starbucks revealed their plan to use
social media for future recruiting. Starbucks plans to reach out to employment candidates by
meeting them through popular media channels such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. In
addition, they will include an area on these sites for employees to post videos, stories, tweets,
and pictures. This new platform can help reduce costs and build two-way communication
(Drum, 2010). Although Starbucks had faced some challenges with setting up their new
recruiting platform, the overall response and results have been positive.
Top Social networking sites in Industry
LinkedIn
On LinkedIn’s most basic level, companies can search for talent and establish relationships with
potential candidates for free. To get started, a firm must simply create a profile for its
business on the Website. Companies may go a step further and purchase a business account for
bonus features like posting jobs; sending private messages directly to any LinkedIn user
regarding job opportunities; saving and managing profiles of prospects; and asking for
introductions to people inside target companies. It also offers an exclusive corporate
recruiting package with additional custom choices and account management. Further, the
company offers webinars on how to better leverage

Organization under study

Google Inc. is one of the biggest technology firm in the UK, with a global presence in
several countries and employees exceeding 23,331, possesses a fully functional online
recruitment website (http://www.google.com/intl/en/jobs/index.html). The website provides
information regarding available vacancies, and steps that prospective applicants should take
in order to fill an application. It also provides relevant information about the organization and
the vacancy position.

Google Inc.’s online recruitment procedure has undergone major changes when compared to
traditional recruitment process it practiced, which only required candidates to send in their
application forms when the firm makes a visit to the university campus or through referral
system. The university students are then invited to take first round of technical tests if their
CVs and Cover letters were deemed suitable. Candidates living miles away from the test
centre would have their accommodation and transportation catered for, only to partake in a 1-
hour technical test, where their likelihood of success is uncertain (Times Online, 2005). Now
with the advent of technology, there’s the possibility that these processes may have been
made more efficient and effective.

CHAPTER: 3
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
ROBIN KROEZE (2015) Social media is becoming increasingly more important in
today’s world. It brings together supply and demand in recruitment and selection. This article
presents an exploratory investigation on the role of social networking sites in recruitment.
Particularly, the aim is to identify how and why companies use social media to attract and
screen applicants during their recruitment processes and if applicants know how to use social
media sites properly. This article also examines the advantages and limitations of recruitment
through social media.

Recruitment Through Digital Platforms

95 for employers as well as jobseekers. Author has chosen Scopus as an appropriate
database for this research project. Scopus is known to be one of the market’s leading search
engines for scientific literature. It provides meta information about scientific articles, has the
possibility to within the title, abstract and keywords of articles and allow batch exportation
of article meta information into Excel. To refine the sample of 1183 articles from Scopus,
author had to apply additional filters. So the number of articles in total was reduced to 819. The
same was done for the search term ‘e-recruitment’, which reduced the number of articles in
total to 716. The findings show that companies are currently using social media in
recruitment, but perhaps not as effective as they could be. Several recommendations and
conditions for success are given to help employers and jobseekers to make the most out of
social media in recruitment.
Sarah L.Bicky and LinchiKwok(2011) Completed a study on social media can be used in
hospitality Industry as a recruiting tool. The survey was through Survey monkey. An E-mail
invitation with a link to the survey has been sent to the department head or the Secretary of the
selected hospitality programs, and asked to forward the E-mail to their undergraduate students.
In addition to descriptive statistical analysis, exploratory factor and confirmatory factor
analysis has been conducted with SPSS 18.0 to confirm the validity of the instrument and the
relationships between constructs. The feelings provided some new useful information
regarding how effective social media is as a recruiting tool in attracting generation Y as
potential employees.
O´Morchuetal., 2004. Linked Inand Facebook are the most important Social Networking
Sites. Based on this study, the relevant Social Networking Sites for this study were chosen.
The Social Networking Sites can be distinguished between business – oriented sites and social –
oriented sites. Business-oriented networking sites allow applicants to interact with one another
through business-oriented information, endorsements, testimonials and reputations. Social-
oriented networking sites are built on personal information of members who participate in and
contribute to the on line network. These personal profiles contain information from relationship
status to a member´s religion and sexual orientation,and are
Shared with their friends and the extended community online.
Conceptual Background
The process of finding and hiring the best-qualified candidates (from within or outside of an
organization) for a job opening, in a timely and cost effective manner is possible only
through social media platform. The recruitment process includes examining the requirements
of a job, attracting employees to that job, screening and selecting applicants, hiring, and
assimilating the new employee to the organization.
Recruitment occurs before selection process of candidates. Candidates who are identified as
right qualified person will be invited to the selection process which involves different types of
tests for knowing knowledge, skills and attitude that are required for performance would be
given job. In simple words, recruitment is a process of calling candidates by way of giving
notification in the newspapers, advertisements, publishing on websites and contacting drop
consultancies. Ultimately without the recruitment, there is scope for selection process

CHAPTER 4
PROJECT OBJECTIVE(S)
 To understand the process of recruitment through various social networking sites.
 To explore the factors that are enhancing the popularity of recruitment through
social networking sites. To know the difference between social media recruitment
and other recruitment options.
 The research objective is therefore to ascertain the benefits – when related to Google
Inc. – of adopting a wholly Internet centered focus to candidate recruitment (graduate
or experienced hires). This research would aim to ascertain the improved efficiencies
and effectiveness that Google has gained through the adoption of an Internet based
approach to recruitment.

CHAPTER: 5
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This research would be based on a quantitative study with students and graduates; and semi-
structured interviews with members of Google Inc.’s graduate recruitment team.

Methodology

a. Research Philosophy

This study will adopt a positivist approach to interrogate the social existence of technology
firms and graduates. These are independent from the researcher and thus, need to be assessed
through objective methods such as reflection, sensation or intuition (Easterby-Smith, 2002).
Reliable information can be established by an investigation of observed occurrences
(Saunders et al, 2007). This study will not use social interpretivism philosophy, which
investigates internalized emotion, because the research question looks to determine the
efficiency of online recruitment at an organization. Objective methods are used to evaluate
this efficiency (such as increase in candidate application and reduction in costs), thereby
warranting a positivist approach.

b. Research approach

This study will assume a deductive method because of its positivist quality (Saunders et al,
2007). This is popular method demonstrates the affiliation between theory and research.
Logical reasoning is then used to develop the results of this study (Bryman and Bell, 2007).
The data findings would be compared against existing literature to ascertain if they concur
with what has already been published in the field of online recruitment.

c. Access

Getting granted access to a suitable resource within a business is vital in attaining primary
information. The investigation questions, designs and related objectives determine how
suitable the source will be (Saunders et al, 2007). As the researcher is a friend of an employee
within the organization, he was able to get access. I contacted a friend of mine who currently
works within graduate recruitment at Google Inc., and discussed the prospects of my
dissertation. She spoke to several of her colleagues on my behalf and they agreed for me to
conduct telephone interviews with 4 members of the graduate recruitment team, some of
which had been there for an average of 5 – 10 years (reasons expatiated further in this
chapter). The organisation and participants did not oppose or object to my enquiry, nor to the
questions I asked.

d. Research Strategy

I will use a case study strategy for the purpose of this investigation and for my research. If it
is necessary to attain a thorough comprehension of the research perspective, the case study
strategy is particularly valuable (Robson, 2002). Therefore as this study aims to understand
the recruitment process within Google Inc. and also any benefits associated with online
recruitment, a case study would be most effective.

STRATEGY AIMS SAMPLE TYPES OF QUESTIONS METHODS OF

ASSESMENT

1. Quantitative questionnaire: Calculate graduates’ understanding of what comprises

an efficient recruitment platform 10 graduates who have applied to one or more
organizations through their online system. Closed rating scale questions, little
information. Descriptive investigation using pie, line and bar charts.

2. Qualitative semi-structured: This was done to ascertain the advantages linked to

online recruitment. 4 members of the recruitment staff within Google Inc., who have
been in the organization for more than 5 years. Ordered questionnaires with broad,
open questions Subject assessment.

i. Quantitative Questionnaire

To attain research data in the shape of, or articulated as, numbers, quantitative methods are
primarily utilized (Easterby-Smith et al, 2008). Questionnaires issued to 10 graduates and
undergraduates, used a rating scale system which asked participants to use a scale from 1 – 5
to indicate the strength of their answer for each question. Secondary information was
determined by the participant’s application activity, partiality and status (the full
questionnaire is outlined in the appendix).

ii.Qualitative Semi Structured Interviews

Four members of the recruitment team were permitted to perform 20 minute telephone
interviews because of the access granted within the organisation. These telephone interviews
were semi-structured as they relied upon a series of pre-determined questions. These
qualitative interviews look to determine data via informal talks (Collis and Hussey, 2003).
The semi-structured system is preferred because unstructured modes are felt to generate
insignificant data, whilst structured systems overlook unanticipated results. Thus, the more
specific nature of the semi-structured system, as well as its potential for probing answers, was
better suited to the study’s aims and objective. Questioning a participant’s answer was shown
to be helpful in situations where further description was needed. The questions used in the
study were based on a series of themes that came from the literature review. Because of the
adaptation of online recruitment recently, the semi structured interviews was targeted at
members of the team who had witnessed or orchestrated the shift towards online recruitment,
that way these respondents would be better able to answer questions that relate to the
comparison of both methods.

Also, members of the online recruitment team being interviewed had different positions
within recruitment and handled separate tasks. The questionnaires were given to them
beforehand, when the approval was first sought, and each respondent chose the questions that
they were more qualified to respond to. Therefore the research was such that all respondents
answered some questions, while some others were answered by a particular individual
because of their knowledge of that process. Table 2 outlines the respondent details and their
interview theme.

Table 2: Interview Respondents and Questions asked

Respondent Fictional Name Role Years in Google Inc. Subjects Covered

R1 Alice Graduate Events Manager 2 Effectiveness, Disadvantages

R2 Martha Application Review 7 Background, Adoption, Effectiveness,

R3 Nick Finance and Budgeting 9 Adoption, Effectiveness, Efficiency

R4 Chloe Media Advertisement 3 Effectiveness, Advertisement

Participants were asked for consent before being interviewed and were told that their names
would be withheld to prevent the results of the interview being distributed. Fictional names
have therefore been used.
e. Data Collection

i. Sampling Method

For the purpose of this study, results would have been more accurate if all the recruitment
staff within the organization had been subjected to the interview. Unfortunately, because of
the time and resource restraints, non-probability sample was assumed: in this sample the
likelihood of each case is chosen from an unknown total population (Oppenheim, 2000).
These samples are commonly deployed when using case studies strategy.

Unfortunately, the samples taken from the technology firms and graduates are too small to
represent the larger populations; the small sample of graduates used in this study cannot
reflect the probability sample of those within London or the United Kingdom, and the Google
Inc. participants are not high enough to represent the entire recruitment department.
Consequently, the study specialised in quantitative certainties: of the understanding of
recruitment within Google Inc., and what graduates perceived of Internet employment.

ii. Primary Data Collection

Easterby-Smith et al (2008) argues that primary and secondary data can be gathered using
quantitative methods. Whilst there are advantages and disadvantages to each of these
methods, the assimilation of independent data provides reassurance that the data suits the
research objectives, and also offers a greater influence over the organization of the sample.

Thus, the researcher attained primary data by distributing-in-person questionnaires to 20

graduates. This distribution was done amongst friends and colleagues within the university
who have utilized online recruitment systems. A tape recorder was used so that the data from
the semi-structured interview and from the conversations with the Google Inc. employees
could be recorded and transcribed. The ability to record and re-listen to interviews was
particularly useful because it permitted the researcher to locate patterns in words and
emotions in the various responses.

f. Analysis of Research Findings

i. Quantitative Data

Whilst the information remains unprocessed, results do not convey significant information
(Saunders et al, 2007). Universities investigate the regularity of the variables, one at a time,
including ordinal and nominal (Oppenheim, 2005). But due to the few graduate participants
and the study of the organization perspective, it was not possible for a bivariate assessment.
Microsoft Excel was used to analyse the results, and graphs were used to compare the results
against the qualitative study.

ii. Qualitative Data

In studies whose investigation has relied upon the literature review, it has been shown that the
theories used can be deployed to assess the results (Yin, 2002). Therefore, such studies could
use a deductive approach for data analysis.

The deductive approach was applied to this study and used to investigate the qualitative data;
with the results being assessed in accordance to the literature review themes. Where
responses varied on a particular question, all participants’ answers were documented and
considered for analysis. Please see the appendix for more information.

The pattern matching process can be used in deductive assessment and involves calculating a
model of results based on theoretical propositions (Saunders et al, 2007). When this is
analysed by data analysis processes, it highlights the existence of analytical structures.
Through the trialling of adequacies of the structure, the process can be used to explain the
results (Saunders et al, 2007). If a predicted pattern is located, it would imply that the results
have an explanation.

CHAPTER:6 15

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

 1. IS ONLINE RECRUITMENT MORE EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT?

Responses Percentage No. of Respondents

Strongly Disagree 10% 5
Disagree 12% 6
Agree 40% 20
Strongly Agree 8% 4
Neutral 30% 15
Total 100% 50

9% 13%

Disagree
Neutral
Agree
33% Strongly Agree
44%

Analysis: out of 50 respondents 5 were highly dissatisfied, 6 were dissatisfied,

20 were satisfied, 4 were strongly satisfied, and 15 were neutral. Majority of
respondents were satisfied with it.

18

2. THE METHODOLOGY USED WAS APPROPRIATE.

Responses Percentage No. of Respondents

 Strongly Disagree 10% 5
Disagree 30% 15
Agree 50% 25
Strongly Agree 6% 3
Neutral 4% 2
Total 100% 50

4% 10%
6%

strongly agree
disagree
30% agree
strongly agree
neutral
50%

Analysis: out of 50 respondents 5 were highly dissatisfied, 15 were dissatisfied,

25 were satisfied, 3 were strongly satisfied, and 2 were neutral. Majority of
respondents were satisfied with it.

19

3.WHAT FORM WOULD BE MOST SUITABLE TO EACH CATEGORY OF

APPLICANTS?

Methods Percentage No. of Respondents

Online Recruitment 55% 28
 Traditional Method 45% 22
Total 100% 50

Column2

Traditional Method
45% Online Recruitment
55%

Analysis: Based on discussions in the previous sub question and views expressed by Parry
(2009), it can be concluded that for graduates, online recruitment does seem to be effective in
attracting a high number of applicants, but not really in that much quality. Information
gathered from the respondents also point out that temporary, experienced and executive
employees are better recruited through traditional recruitment methods such as word of
mouth and executive search agencies, but not so much so for graduates because they received
the lowest priority. The following sub chapter therefore outlines the most effective form of
attracting graduates online, since they form the main basis of the organization’s online
recruitment campaigns.
4. Graduate Questionnaire Response

RAW DATA FROM RESPONDENTS

Respo Job Web Onli Infor Corp Prev. Job Gra Wo Ease Perc
ndent avail Appe ne matio orate Co. Bo duat rd of eive
abilit aranc We n Bran Kno ard e of Appli d Fit
y e b Avail d wledg s Even Mo cation
Pres ability e ts uth
ence
1 3 3 4 3 4 3 5 5 3 2 1
2 4 2 5 2 5 3 5 5 4 3 2
3 4 4 4 3 5 2 4 4 3 4 1
4 3 5 5 4 4 3 5 5 5 5 3
5 5 2 5 4 5 2 4 3 4 3 2
6 5 1 4 3 3 3 3 2 5 4 3
7 4 3 5 4 5 4 4 1 4 2 1
8 5 3 4 3 4 3 5 1 5 3 3
9 4 2 3 3 5 4 5 3 3 4 2
10 3 3 4 4 4 2 4 1 3 5 1
11 4 4 5 3 5 3 5 4 2 3 4
12 4 3 4 4 5 4 3 5 4 4 5
13 3 4 5 4 4 1 4 3 5 5 2
14 4 3 5 5 5 2 5 5 2 3 1

DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS OF DATA RECEIVED

Web Appearance Online Web Presence Information about Job Corporate Brand
Previous Organization Knowledge Job Boards Graduate Events Word of Mouth Ease of
Application Perceived Fit

Mean 3.00 4.40 3.53 4.47 2.80 4.40 3.47 3.73 3.47 2.33

Mode 3 4.00 4 5 3 5 5 4 3 1

Median 3.00 4.00 4.00 5.00 3.00 5.00 4.00 4.00 3.00 2.00
PREFERRED MODE OF APPLICATION

Frequency Percent

Valid

Word of Mouth 1 9.80%

Employee Referral 3 52.12%

Internet 6 38.08%
 Chapter : 7 25

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

FINDINGS

 Majority of the employees were satisfied with online recruitment

 56% of the employees were satisfied with the methodology used by the company.
 55% of Applicants were happy with the Online Recruitment.
 Word of Mouth is 9.80%
 Employee Referral is 52.12%
 Internet is 38.08%

RECOMMENDATIONS

 Management has to make certain improvements in the online Recruitment because

38% of the of the Recruitment is from Internet.
 Management should take proper measures to make changes in the Web Appearance.
 Necessary changes should be made in Ease Of Applicants.
 Proper Steps should be taken to improve Perceived Fit..
 27

Chapter 8
CONCLUSION

The role of Social Networking Sites in recruitment becoming much more significant and is
an upcoming topic in India. It is quite common to use the services of social media, when you
are recruiting today, since it is both inexpensive and allows you to form a vast pool of
potential candidates, within a very short period of time. Social media websites such as
LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter have communities where potential employees submit their
resumes and credentials in the hope of getting a job. The networking scope of the site is the
strongest predicting factor for effective recruitment, in particular for the target group
orientation. Indian recruiters have only recently started to use social networking and cannot
observe the long-term effects- and costs reduction is a long-term focused topic.
 28

Chapter 8

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books
 Allen, D.G., Van Scotter, J.R., Otondo, R.F. (2004). Recruitment communication
media:Impact on pre-hire outcomes. Personnel Psychology, 57, 143-171.
 Brown, V. V. (2011). The Writing on thaw (Facebook) Wall: The Use of Social
Networking Sites in Hiring’s Decisions. Springer, 219-225.
 Henderson, M. J. (2013). Silences of ethical practice: dilemmas for researchers using
social media. In Educational Research and Evaluation (pp. 546-560).
 Kluemper, D. (2013). Social Network Screening: Pitfalls, Possibilities, and Parallels
in Employment Selection. Emerald Insight, 1-21.
 Recruitment Through Digital Platforms 99
 100 Research in Digital Revolution and New India (ISBN : 978-1-5136-2964-3)
 Madera, J. (2012). Using social networking websites as a selection tool: The role of
selection process fairness and job pursuit intentions. International Journal of
Hospitality Management, 1276-1282.

Websites
 Google

https://www.slideshare.net/Online Recruitment-programmes-by-Google Inc.